A United Airlines flight carrying 150 passengers and six crew members was forced to return to Las Vegas over the weekend after a traveler sent a text message reading that he was going to hijack the aircraft, according to court documents. The incident aboard the Boeing 737 unfolded shortly after takeoff, triggering an immediate security lockdown and a diversion back to Harry Reid International Airport.
The disturbance began roughly 15 minutes into the flight when a flight attendant observed a passenger receiving a text message containing the words “I’m gonna hijack,” according to a criminal complaint. Authorities reviewed seating assignments and identified 25-year-old Dante Milne as the sender. Investigators noted that the communication conveyed a first-person declaration of intended violence involving hijacking the aircraft and crashing the recipient’s row.
Upon being alerted by the flight attendant, the captain initiated safety protocols and turned the aircraft around due to a security concern. Law enforcement officers arrested Milne on the tarmac after the plane landed safely in Las Vegas.
Following his arrest, Milne told authorities that his remarks were merely drunken banter directed at a coworker seated elsewhere on the plane. The welding apprentice from New Jersey explained that he had consumed a beer and multiple shots at an airport bar prior to boarding, intending to sleep through the trip. He stated that he had dozed off and only learned the flight was returning when he was awakened mid-flight.
Milne maintained that he never intended to hijack the plane, crash, or harm anyone, and offered an apology for the disruption. No passengers confronted him during the flight before authorities took him into custody.
Charged with one count of making threats or conveying false information concerning an act of terrorism, Milne was subsequently released from the Clark County Detention Center. During a court appearance on Tuesday, his defense attorney, James Gallo, informed a judge that his client intends to plead not guilty. His next scheduled court date is January 5.
